Great white shark spotted off Cape Cod

State officials have confirmed that a shark spotted in the waters off Truro and Provincetown over the weekend was a great white.

A spokeswoman for the state Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs tells the Cape Cod Times that the agency's expert Greg Skomal confirmed the sighting after examining photographs.

A tourist took pictures of the shark attacking a seal close to shore Saturday morning between Race Point Beach in Provincetown and Head of the Meadow Beach in Truro. It was the northernmost point a great white has been confirmed this summer.

Officials put up warning flags in the area.

South Beach in Chatham has been closed since July after several great whites were spotted. Scientists say they're drawn by an explosion in the seal population.